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Meet the Beet!

By Gurubachan Kaur Khalsa

Allow me to reintroduce your best friend—the beet! Now, I know that many of you have grown up on canned beets and to you they weren’t your best friends. I fully understand. The first time I tasted canned beets I couldn’t even swallow them. In Mexico, we ate only fresh vegetables and the beet was one of them. I am truly sorry for those who have never really enjoyed a good beet. This most wonderful vegetable is also one of the most powerful for cleansing and rejuvenation. Its powerful healing ability goes directly to the liver.

I have seen first-hand the healing miracles beets can perform. My sweet mother-in-law, who never drank in her life, was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver, an illness usually associated with drinking alcohol. The doctors told her that there was no medicine for it. While visiting us on a trip to New Mexico she decided to treat it with an Ayurvedic[1] diet that included beets for 40 days. Please understand that I am not recommending any diet but I do know what I saw before my eyes. She went through a lot of cleansing during this time and she became very radiant. When she went back home, her doctors were very surprised to see her blood tests. She lived a longer life than the doctors predicted and she never suffered from all the reactions that are usually associated with her illness. In the ancient Ayurvedic system beets rejuvenate tired blood and cleanse the liver. When the liver is cleansed and the blood is rejuvenated, you experience your own spring eternal.

By now you are probably asking yourself, “Is this an article on healing or on food?” There is no better way to rejuvenate and cleanse than to give your body the energy it needs to renew itself. There is nothing better than a delicious recipe for “Beet Parmesan.”This recipe is so tasty it will reinvent your relationship with beets. It is so satisfying that you can’t believe you are eating mainly beets. And, it is so easily digestible that you will have an abundance of reserve energy. You will feel light, lofty, nurtured, and satisfied. What more can you ask? The next time you have a dinner party serve it with a wonderful spring green salad and fresh garlic bread. I promise you there won’t be any leftovers. Your guests and family members will happily talk about it for a long time.

Beet Parmesan

2-3 bunches of beets [around 2 lbs]

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

4-6 cloves finely chopped fresh garlic

1 small piece of finely diced ginger [optional]

15 oz can of tomato sauce

8 leaves of fresh basil or 2 Tbsp dry basil

¼ tsp of crushed red pepper [optional]

Salt to taste

¼ c shredded fresh parmesan cheese (or cheese alternative)

Either pressure cook the beets for 10 minutes or boil them in water until soft. Rinse, peel, and shred the beets in a food processor or hand grater. Sauté the onions, garlic, and ginger in olive oil until slightly brown. Add canned tomatoes, basil, and salt. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add shredded beets and simmer with tomato sauce for another 5 minutes. Add the entire mixture to a baking dish and top with shredded fresh parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Serve with a side salad of mixed organic greens with a light creamy dressing and fresh, hot garlic bread. Enjoy!

Gurubachan Kaur is the CEO of Khalsa Trading Company and a former chef of Golden Temple Conscious Cookery, one of the first vegetarian restaurants in the U.S. She was born in Mexico of Lebanese parents and currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with her family.

[1] Ayurveda is a system of medicine that helps achieve perfect health of body, mind, the senses, and the soul.